King Assassin 2024

Big emphasis on sticking with it this year. Was top 100 heading into Origin last year and ended up falling out of the top 10,000 due to poor Origin and bye round planning and ended up sacking off the year before round 20. I have avoided drafting a team all pre season and now that TLT part 1 is here I've got around to drafting a team I'm pretty happy with heading into the season.

Harry Grant: Best hooker in the comp, could easily avg 60+ this year and id say is a near must have given the slim hooker options. Round 4 bye scares me but I do have cover in that position so I should be fine. May be a trade out around Origin but you never know.

Tohu Harris: Getting up there in age, But still gets the job done. No origin or early byes so Barring injury could see him as a season keeper for my team, which played a big part in drafting him. AFB and Barnett being big minute guys next to him scares me a little but 70+ minutes from Tohu should be obtainable for him.

J'maine Hopgood: I believe he will be the top Forward in fantasy this year. He is still young and last year was his first year playing consistent big minutes. I expect him to go 1 better and Avg high 60s this year, DPP is handy as well. Will probably play origin this year but its no guarantee.

Tevita Tatola: Not sold on him completely, but should plod his way to 5-10 points of value and with the slim options in the middles for mid range guys, its worth a punt. if he hasn't come good by round 7 bye, he's not a horrible guy to have in the early rounds for consistent scoring.

Brendan Piakura: Broncs starting edge, should be in every team. Great job security and plenty of value. Looked great in the trial too. No byes till round 13 so plenty of time to make cash and max out, if he doesn't end up being a keeper.

Sitili Tupouniua: The more likely of the 2 edges to play 80, got to run at least 1 so Sitili is my pick here. No byes till round 13 so plenty of time to make money. DPP will come in handy too.

Nathan Cleary: Hynes injury cloud, new halves partner. If you're gonna fork out 1m for a player Cleary is your guy.

Jamal Fogarty: Goal kicking, Big kick meters next to rookie half, primary playmaker. Yes please, sign me up!

Euan Aitken: Back rower available at centre, no brainer here, on the expensive side but definitely money to make after spending time in the centres last year. Wont play origin so barring injury and job security, should be a season keeper in the centres.

Ben Trbojevic: What better then 1 centre playing backrow, 2 centres playing back row, Job security not amazing with Schuster Looming but there's every chance he holds his spot and Schuster plays Lock. At base price definitely worth the risk.

Ryan Papenhuyzen: Proven keeper and is healthy again. Lets hope its stays that way. Not sure what he will average, but there's definitely plenty of upside. Slight origin risk but should miss out on selection, Round 4 bye is annoying, but ill figure that out when I get there.

Jordan Rapana: Averages a career 49 as a fullback and looks to have that spot to start the season. Low ownership which I expect to jump heaps come next Tuesday. No early byes which is helpful with my other 2 WFBs, Just picking and hoping he holds that spot once Kris is back.

Kane Bradley: Trials indicate he's won the race to the starting back row spot, if he's picked will definitely be in my team. running 2 storms players in the same position given the round 4 bye is my only concern, but I tackle that problem when we get there, lets hope another WFB option pops up by then.

Joey Lussick: BA wants an 80 minute hooker, Joey Lussick looks to be that guy, I expect Hands to be in the side and play 15-20 to start the season but I think Joey will work his way up to playing close to 80. Avg 71 minutes as a starting hooker for a 45 avg. Should make decent money.

Heilum Luki: No Leilua means great job security as a starting edge. Should be a Keeper and given his 498k price tag, im surprsed hes not in more teams. Avg of 55 in 60+ minute games so plenty of money to make. Will probably trade him out in the back end of the year given the cowboys late season bye schedule.

Spencer Leniu: Its Lenius year. New team, new role, New Leniu. Great PPM guy in limited minutes lets hope that corelates in bigger minutes he might get this year. Small sample size but 40 minutes should be enough to make good cash. I think we should all get on the Leniu train!

Jaemon Salmon: Looks to have the Lock spot to start the year and played well in the trials, Curran and Mann around isn't ideal but at that price its hard to pass on. Could be a borderline keeper if he can keep his spot all year.

Samuel Hughes. I love me some Sam Hughes. Will have a decent roll to start the year, at base price definitely has some money to make. Good PPM, What else can I say...

Ethan Strange: Never really thought of him as a half last year but looks to have the spot to start the year. Gives me good Centre and Half cover and is base price which seems hard to come by this year. Weekes will be lurking all year but its an easy swap if they do end up swapping.

Keano Kini: Not great job security, round 2 bye, but still probably the best WFB cover to start the year under 300k. 1-3 games is all he will get but hoping he can keep his spot till round 5 to cover for the storm bye. I want Campbell once he's back lets hope its an easy trade to swap these too once he's back.

Jesse Marshke: NRL predicted teams had him as 14 for the dragons if he gets the back up hooker job should be a good option as a slow price riser in my EMG which is helpful given some of the early trades ill have to make. If another cheap WFB pops up I may swap to them for extra cover.

Leaves me with 16K ITB, so not much wiggle room if TLT P2 isn't kind. Feedback is encouraged and appreciated.

For those who don't like to read;

Grant
Tohu Hopgood Tatola
Sitili Piakura
Cleary Fogarty
Aitken Burbo
Papy Rapana Kane

Lussick Luki Leniu Salmon
Shughes Strange Kini Marshke 16k ITB

L-Jimmy wrote:Aitken unlikely to start, very unlikely to hold the role.
Harris old and busted.
Marschke an interesting punt, but that Conor kid may be preferred as backup hooker.
Kane unlikely to start - need backup plans

Obviously if Aitken doesn't get a starting edge roll I wont have him in my team. I think he's a good chance of getting that spot tho I wouldnt say he's unlikely to get it.

Harris is a proven gun, He will play 70+ most weeks and if he can stay healthy, hes 7 points under-priced based on last years scoring. No origin and great bye schedule.

Marshke another guy I wont have if Muhleison gets the bench gig. If he gets it great, if noot it wont be too difficult to upgrade to a Levi or another WFB cheapy.

Kane is a big hope. Trial indicates he has the gig, Back up plan would be to move a few pieces around and get a Ponga or a Toó.

Hey mate pretty solid. Not keen on Tohu not sure he gets 70 plus regularly. I prefer Haas Murray or McInnes. Aitken unlikely to start.

Not sure at all we get Bradley having 3 Storm players with round 4 bye isn’t ideal.

Rapana is a risk could pay off but last year said he doesn’t like playing FB who knows how long he stays there.

Leniu will be a slow burn might go back to 35mins next week with JWH back a lot of mouths to feed. Leniu is best in kind of two 18mins stints that’s when he’s good and has most impact

King Assassin wrote:

Obviously if Aitken doesn't get a starting edge roll I wont have him in my team. I think he's a good chance of getting that spot tho I wouldnt say he's unlikely to get it.

Harris is a proven gun, He will play 70+ most weeks and if he can stay healthy, hes 7 points under-priced based on last years scoring. No origin and great bye schedule.

Marshke another guy I wont have if Muhleison gets the bench gig. If he gets it great, if noot it wont be too difficult to upgrade to a Levi or another WFB cheapy.

Kane is a big hope. Trial indicates he has the gig, Back up plan would be to move a few pieces around and get a Ponga or a Toó.

Aitken isn’t training as first team EDG (Lemuelu and Kaufusi)

Was post on main thread today

Made a couple changes heading into Vegas. After being informed that Aitken was unlikely to start, (Thank you Camo, Rabs and L-Jimmy), I realised id probably go with a cheaper centre so downgraded aitken to Suli as a place holder. I also Downgrade Tatola to Wong and moved Sitili into the mids after falling out of love with the Tatola pick. With the money I was able to turn Leniu into Platt as a place holder, and locked in Murray over Tohu to give me a reliable VC option for Vegas instead of locking in a non vegas player or someone cheaper. I went into vegas with 6 players locked and my team is currently as followed;

Grant
Hopgood Murray(VC) Sitili
Wong Piakura
Cleary(C) Fogarty
Burbo Suli
Pappy Rapana Kane

Lussick Platt Luki Salmon
S.Hughes Strange Kini Marshke 12k ITB

Rocks and Diamonds for me after vegas. Cant complain about burbo, looked really good, should be in my team for a while before I have to cash him out. Hopefully he holds his place. Piakura HIA is annoying but at least there's an insurance factor in the fact that every competitive team will have him. Sitili and Wong is an interesting situation. Will probably hold them both for next week just to get a better idea for what that Forward rotation will look like, Hopefully there injuries are nothing major and they line up in round 2. Going Murray over Haas hurts a little 14 point difference for saving 100k, but Murray did have to spend quite a bit of time at 2nd row once Arrow went off and Haas got extended minutes because of Piakura's early shower, so every chance Murray outscores Haas next week. Overall 180/5 which isn't a great start but plenty to work with going into the second part of round 1 and Round 2.

Our teams are very different - only 9 players the same

Pretty kind TLT overall not too many changes heading into round 1. Here are the changes I'm making to my squad;

HOK: Reese Robson, going with Robson over Grant mainly for bye planning reasons, Given the round 4 bye Robson should only be about 60 points behind Grant after 12 rounds (going off a 10 point differential). The extra 128K also allows me to make a key upgrade elsewhere.

MID: Jason Taumololo, With Platt not getting the start, and the limited options for mid price middles, I'm willing to take a gamble on Taumololo. Looks like he's past his prime now but hoping his game matures this year and he can turn himself into more of a worker through the middle. I'll give him a couple weeks, but given he's is sitting around that 500k range, it shouldn't be too difficult to upgrade to a Koro or May, if hes no good.

CTR: Jacob Kiraz, Downgrading Grant allowed me to upgrade Suli to Kiraz. Has DPP WFB and a career avg of 47.3 as a centre. Priced at 40 he has moey to make and should be a season keeper for me. His DPP will come in handy, with early byes for Kini and Papy.

MID: Jacob Saifiti, definitely my least ''set in stone'' spot in my squad. With Lussick a wait and see with Hands on the bench, I've been tossing up between Haas, Palasia and Saifiti. Given Titans rd 2 bye Saifiti is the safe pick. Only real competition for his starting spot is his brother. 42 career avg as a starter playing over 40 minutes means there is 10 points of upside there. Hopefully he can be a consistent scorer in the early rounds for me while I wait for other cashies to insert themselves.

HOK: Danny Levi, with Robson my only hooker, Levi gives me cover. Hoping for 30pts in 50 minutes as a starting hooker which would get his price moving nicely. Hopefully I don't have to play him much if at all while he's gaining cash.

EDG: Joe Chan, pretty straight swap from Kane. Don't really have much expectation for him. He's another cheap starting edge and that was enough for me. Throwing him in the emergencies so hopefully he keeps his spot and makes steady cash.

MID: Viliami Fifita, Like the last 2 picks, just hoping for him to hold his spot and make steady cash. Brought him in for shoes as the Bulldogs bench seems hard for him to get minutes compared to Vifi whom has a clear back up role off the bench for Lawrie.

Full Line up;

Robson
Lolo Murray(VC) Sitili
Pakura Wong
Cleary(C) Fogarty
Burbo Kiraz
Papy Rapana Kini

Hopgood Luki JSaifiti Salmon
Levi Chan Vifi Strange 29k ITB

Probably as close to the 7guns, 7mids, 7 cows, I'm going to get. Robson and Fogarty are borderline guns but should avg 50 which is the threshold I'm using. Also Papy is also considered a gun, cause its papy

Gun
Mid Gun Mid
Mid Mid
Gun Gun
Cow Gun
Gun Mid Cow

Gun Mid Mid Cow
Cow Cow Cow Cow

King Assassin wrote:Pretty kind TLT overall not too many changes heading into round 1. Here are the changes I'm making to my squad;

HOK: Reese Robson, going with Robson over Grant mainly for bye planning reasons, Given the round 4 bye Robson should only be about 60 points behind Grant after 12 rounds (going off a 10 point differential). The extra 128K also allows me to make a key upgrade elsewhere.

MID: Jason Taumololo, With Platt not getting the start, and the limited options for mid price middles, I'm willing to take a gamble on Taumololo. Looks like he's past his prime now but hoping his game matures this year and he can turn himself into more of a worker through the middle. I'll give him a couple weeks, but given he's is sitting around that 500k range, it shouldn't be too difficult to upgrade to a Koro or May, if hes no good.

CTR: Jacob Kiraz, Downgrading Grant allowed me to upgrade Suli to Kiraz. Has DPP WFB and a career avg of 47.3 as a centre. Priced at 40 he has moey to make and should be a season keeper for me. His DPP will come in handy, with early byes for Kini and Papy.

MID: Jacob Saifiti, definitely my least ''set in stone'' spot in my squad. With Lussick a wait and see with Hands on the bench, I've been tossing up between Haas, Palasia and Saifiti. Given Titans rd 2 bye Saifiti is the safe pick. Only real competition for his starting spot is his brother. 42 career avg as a starter playing over 40 minutes means there is 10 points of upside there. Hopefully he can be a consistent scorer in the early rounds for me while I wait for other cashies to insert themselves.

HOK: Danny Levi, with Robson my only hooker, Levi gives me cover. Hoping for 30pts in 50 minutes as a starting hooker which would get his price moving nicely. Hopefully I don't have to play him much if at all while he's gaining cash.

EDG: Joe Chan, pretty straight swap from Kane. Don't really have much expectation for him. He's another cheap starting edge and that was enough for me. Throwing him in the emergencies so hopefully he keeps his spot and makes steady cash.

MID: Viliami Fifita, Like the last 2 picks, just hoping for him to hold his spot and make steady cash. Brought him in for shoes as the Bulldogs bench seems hard for him to get minutes compared to Vifi whom has a clear back up role off the bench for Lawrie.

Full Line up;

Robson
Lolo Murray(VC) Sitili
Pakura Wong
Cleary(C) Fogarty
Burbo Kiraz
Papy Rapana Kini

Hopgood Luki JSaifiti Salmon
Levi Chan Vifi Strange 29k ITB

The only pick I really dislike is VFifita. Open the wallet and spend $20k more to get Hughes. Has poor job security, low PPM, and likely to get low minutes. Based on his PPM at prop, 30 minutes, would only be a 19 average https://yafss.com/player/507849/

Otherwise looks good.

Round 1 Finish has me ranked 43,885th with a score of 705. Puts me a little below average for the week, but definitely not upset with how things started all things considered.

Trade block heading into round 2; (Avoided the dead weight in Vifi by trading him to Shoes "before lockout".)

J'maine Hopgood: Looked like his normal self out there, the problem is the minutes. Managed 48 in 51 minutes, which for someone at his price point you definitely need more out of. Was spelled twice in the game, with 1 of them coming late in the game with the win pretty much secured. Whether 55ish minutes is the new norm for J'maine or BA is just easing him into the season is yet to be seen. For that reason I'll be holding him this week and seeing how things play out.

Jason Taumololo: 1 20 minute stint for 20 points... He claims Todd, spared him as the game was in control, but with a mid 40s BE he probably loses a fair bit of money now unless he for whatever reason jumps to 50 minutes next week. I don't see this happening and the cash is better used else where and for this reason I'll most definitely be using a trade on him this week.

Sitili and Wong: Roosters rotation seemed all over the place at Vegas. Hopefully we see something a bit more standard in round 2. What looks to be the case based on what we saw before injuries was Wong will be spelled by Butcher around the 30 minute mark with Sitili to play 80. Wong then comes back on with around 20 to go with Butcher finishing out the game in the middle rotation. If both named to start, I will be holding both to make sure of this heading into round 2.

Jacob Kiraz: Thought of him as a mid to high 40s keeper when I picked him in round 1. That still might be the case, but it now seems hes going to be moved back out to the wing with the JAC injury. He score 7 points less as a Winger but he should move to the other side where Bulldogs generally prefer attacking down which may see him score higher. On the fence on if I should trade him out or not. Only because I really Liked the look of Taylan May at a similar price point. But I am probably leaning towards holding this week to see how he goes before making any rash decisions.

Keano Kini: Scored poorly as a starting fullback and will now struggle to make any significant money before Campbell returns. Came up against what looks to be a really strong defensive team in the Dragons under Flanno, but definitely had glimpses of what he can do. Has the bye this week, and probably has round 3 and 4 left to score. Unless a absolute must have is named out of no where this week, I am going to hold while he's still getting picked and use him to loop this week and hope he scores better the following 2 weeks.

Target List;
- Alex Seyfarth: If named to start at lock.
- Taylan May: Stand out without any cohesion in Penrith's attack.
- Terrell May: Decent minutes at really impressive PPM, probably inflated by the injuries and with no JWH, no Leniu for several weeks helps his case tho.
- Apisai Koroisau: A wait and see this week, looking at round 3 or 4 to get him in if he fires.
- Jayden Campbell: Will be brought in upon return.

Adding Tallis Duncan to my Target List, Probably on minutes watch this week and waiting on more information on the Arrow situation.

Despite a score of 705, I've decided to hold strong for round 2 and not make any trades. There's a few guys I'm definitely keen on but am gonna wait for next week to make sure theyre good options.

This weeks team;

Robson
Hopgood(VC) Murray JSaifiti
Luki Wong
Cleary(C) Fogarty
Burbo Strange
Papy Rapana Kiraz

Sitili Piakura Salmon Kini(Loop)
Lolo Chan Levi Shoes

King Assassin wrote:Despite a score of 705, I've decided to hold strong for round 2 and not make any trades. There's a few guys I'm definitely keen on but am gonna wait for next week to make sure theyre good options.

This weeks team;

Robson
Hopgood(VC) Murray JSaifiti
Luki Wong
Cleary(C) Fogarty
Burbo Strange
Papy Rapana Kiraz

Sitili Piakura Salmon Kini(Loop)
Lolo Chan Levi Shoes

I would be concerned about Lolo mate if I were in your shoes.

Rabbits21 wrote:
I would be concerned about Lolo mate if I were in your shoes.

Been tossing up Lolo > Seyfarth/Duncan, but gonna hold off and see how those 2 play out this week before choosing. Saves the trade for now so I can make a more confident decision next week.

King Assassin wrote:Despite a score of 705, I've decided to hold strong for round 2 and not make any trades. There's a few guys I'm definitely keen on but am gonna wait for next week to make sure theyre good options.

This weeks team;

Robson
Hopgood(VC) Murray JSaifiti
Luki Wong
Cleary(C) Fogarty
Burbo Strange
Papy Rapana Kiraz

Sitili Piakura Salmon Kini(Loop)
Lolo Chan Levi Shoes

Having a Luki at this in hindsight, making a trade could have been wise

Updated Target list, in order of importance.

Target List
- Terrell May: Gonna jump up a heap again this week with a low breakeven, Got to make the move now or he's probably gonna be out of reach for me next week.

- Joey Lussick: Also due for a big price rise and with Hands out of the 17 he's set for 80. Price rise wont be as much as Terrell May's which is why he's below him. Will be first trade in next week.

- Lachlan Galvin: Looks like he could be one of the best cash cows, too bad he didn't play round 1 and I couldn't start with him. Definitely a trade in either this week or next week.

- Kulikefu Finefeuiaki: If he gets good minutes this week, He will be top of the trade in list come next week. Someone I definitely want to wait and see with tho with Gos on the bench.

- Jayden Campbell: Will be a straight swap for Kini on return. Hoping for round 5, after the storm bye so I can get the above targets in my team, and trade out the duds and Not leave me with with 2 non playing WFB that round.

- Apisai Korosau: Definitely a guy I'm looking at as a cut price keeper with a good bye schedule. Origin risk and the plan to get Lussick means its less urgent, but will probably bring him in at some point.

Updated Trade block list, in order of importance.

Trade block list

- Heilum Luki: "Having a Luki at this in hindsight, making a trade could have been wise", (The Dolphin Conspiracies, 17 Mar 2024). Scored well thanks to a try in round 1 but with the injury he has to go asap.

- Siua Wong: Probably the rooster edge I wanted to keep there spot, given he was making cash. Probably wont be in the reserves for long but given he wont play at this stage hes a definite sell at earliest convenience.

- Jason Taumololo: Wanted to sell this week but, have bigger fish to fry in Wong and Luki. Maybe a reward for holding him 2 weeks longer then I should of in the form of a try? Will be gone next week barring any major outs next week.

- Sitili Tupouniua: Keeps his spot on the edge, but isn't getting the minutes to make any cash. Not as urgent a trade out as the above guys, as he's still playing but definitely a sell asap to avoid any more price drops.

- Keano Kini: Not a sell at this point as hes playing. But definitely the guy Ill be using to get Campbell in my team when he returns in... *Round 5*

- Jacob Kiraz: Still every chance he bounces back and starts putting up keeper centre scores, so willing to hold a few more weeks and wait and see, but when your 2 base price centres are scoring better and you're considering putting your 'Keeper' centre in the reserves, its not a good sign.